1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to injection compositions. More specifically, this invention relates to insulin containing injection compositions, which are especially useful for treating diabetes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The increase in the blood sugar level, caused by diabetes mellitus due to the lowered endogenous production of insulin by the pancreas may be lowered to normal values by percutaneous, and especially intramuscular, injections of insulin obtained from animal pancreas secretions. In serious diabetes cases, it is often necessary to give the patient injections of insulin two or more times per day every day. Normally, patients are given 10 to 40 units in the morning and 4 to 20 units at night. However, these doses must often be increased substantially in order to maintain the blood sugar level at its normal physiologic value.
In order to attain a more lasting effect of one injection, the insulin is combined with substances which form salt-like or complex bonds with the insulin. It is known, for example, to combine insulin with protamine. The depo-effect so attained may be improved still further by the admixture of zinc ions. Such combination of the insulin with protamine, or possibly globulin, results in a delay of the resorption of the insulin from the point of injection into the organism in general, or the blood stream respectively, but an actual increase in its effect is not attained thereby. Furthermore, these known combinations will not neutralize the effects of non-tolerance as experienced by many patients when given a higher dosage of insulin, especially when treatments are given over long periods of time.
Insulin therapy has known side effects, including, among others, the hypoglycemia which leads to heavy outbreaks of perspiration, ravenous hunger, muscular contractions, etc., and also allergic reactions which often result in a resistance to insulin, thus necessitating the application of even heavier doses of insulin which in turn will intensify the side-reactions. In this connection, see Mehnert & Schoefflin, "Diabetologie in Klinik and Praxis", [Thieme, Stuttgart 1974] pp. 283 to 298.
The search has continued for improved insulin injection compositions which are particularly useful for treating diabetes. This invention was made as a result of that search.